I totally hear ya' Matthew, and saw those exact same figures you're referring to last night. Unfortunately, this has been a horrendous problem for the last several months on ALL the Saga stuff I've seen, and it's apparently getting even worse now.

All the Coll. 2 figures from the earlier Aayla/Barriss wave had all had multiple bubble dings along the top and bottom front edges of ALL the bubbles, some causing the whole bubble to get seriously dented in. But I saw those same figures (and many more at other stores) last night, and the new Saga carded product is definitely all REALLY badly damaged - we're talking CRUSHED bubbles on nearly all of them. Absolutely terrible. The damage is getting close to the point where this may no longer just be a carded collector's problem, since these things are so smashed in that the actual action figures are close to being damaged themselves!

I have no idea what the hell is going on with Hasbro's packaging and shipping process recently, but something HAS TO CHANGE, and soon. This problem is really snowballing out of control from everything I've seen at the various stores in So Cal...

obi_robz

I have to buy online, but the upside is that all my 2003 figures have been mint. Perhaps it’s something to do with the solid cases the UK gets – maybe the cardboard is of higher quality or there’s more room inside the cases or something. Weird.

This is pretty much all I see around my area as well. Obviously the figure's aren't fitting into the cases properly, and are just getting forced/smashed in their by Hasbro. I'm not sure I've seen any figures in the past couple months without pretty significant bubble damage. Really sucks for the carded collectors.

I'm not sure if this is nation wide, but I would say that 80% of the new figures that are starting to show up here in Colorado have cards that look like the box they were in was run over! I thought that maybe there was an epidemic of strapped for cash collectors that didn't want to leave anything good for the next guy. So they were mauling each card in frustration and in contempt of the guy who did show up with money to burn. This theory came to a halt as more and more showed up in just retched condition. I kid you not when I say they are bad! I have yet to run into newly pegged figures that are all pristine and perfect. I have had to settle for the most part on figures with bent corners, creases and bubble dents. No MOMC here! I have heard from another staff member that he is receiving less than satisfactory card conditions from websites that promise mint carded figures.

What is the deal?!! Is it just me? Or is this an epidemic that is concerning others as well? It's getting ridiculous and I'm about to start interrogating retail toy stockers about their treatment of boxes that say Hasbro Star Wars on them!

Thomas, we've had several threads, and numerous posts about this issue in the last month or two, so it's definitely not isolated to your area! Check the "Drop Kick Joe" thread for a lot more responses on the matter...

Since the release of the Aayla/Barriss/Lama Su wave about 5 months ago on up through the new Saga carded waves recently hitting stores, I would say that about 85% of the figures that I've seen were not MOMC or even anywhere close to it, with most of the damage happening to the bubbles, and not the cards themselves oddly enough. This is a packaging problem with Hasbro (one that dustrho recently discussed with Andy from Hasbro at the WW Chicago show and wrote about in his exclusive Q & A here last week). These figures are coming straight out of perfect cases at the stores (I've seen it many times, as have others), with completely smashed up bubbles, so obviously something needs to be changed in regards to Hasbro's packaging methods. It's not something the stores, or even the customers are doing for the most part. This is Hasbro's screw up.

Definitely a frustrating issue for the MOMC collectors for sure! I am constantly trying to upgrade some of my poorer condition cards, and through several months of looking, and numerous new figure sightings (and help with a nice Ephant Mon from David ), I'm pretty much in good shape now, and happy with my figure's conditions...

So good luck MOMC'ers! Keep hunting, and I'm sure eventually you'll find some decent stuff!

The same thing is recurring my area as well...frustrating to those who collect mint carded figures who don't open them...but okay to people who open them...I asked at my Walmart if they could discount the smashed ones and they said no because it cut into their profit, oh, well, worth a shot...I bought the figures anyway because I open all of them...more fun that way!!!